


To Be Cared For

by onlybritainisgreat (frecklesarechocolate)



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Comfort, Feels, Gen, Hugs, Warm and Fuzzy Feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-14
Updated: 2012-12-14
Packaged: 2017-11-21 02:12:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,480
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/592305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/frecklesarechocolate/pseuds/onlybritainisgreat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Castiel wants Dean to let someone take care of him.</p>
            </blockquote>





	To Be Cared For

**Author's Note:**

> I have been having an awful lot of Dean feels this week.

One thing that Castiel knows for sure is that Dean Winchester does not allow people to take care of him.

Dean Winchester takes care of others. He takes care of Sam. He took care of his father; he took care of his mother, even though he was four years old at the time.

Dean has never allowed anyone to take care of him, even when he needs it most.

Castiel is determined to change that, to get Dean to see that being cared for, being taken care of is all right, it's okay, and that sometimes, yes, it's necessary.

Castiel is not exactly sure how he is going to go about doing this, but he's got time. The good thing about being an angel is that you are created with patience; you are designed for the long haul.

All Castiel has is time.

Taking care of Dean Winchester is Castiel's new mission, and he will not fail.

There was, of course, the greatest example of taking care of Dean: pulling him from perdition, stitching him back together starting from the ground up. But since then Dean's self worth has been at its lowest ever, or at least, that's according to Sam. Because Castiel knows that the task he has set for himself cannot be borne alone. So he turns to Sam, knowing that Sam would do anything for Dean, and so therefore will be a stalwart ally in this new mission.

Sam thinks that Castiel's new mission is a great idea. It's a crazy one, because Castiel probably will never get Dean to lower his guard, not for even a second.

However, if there were anyone on this planet to attempt this, who might, just _might_ possibly have a shot at accomplishing this mission, it would be Castiel, Angel of Thursday.

So Castiel and Sam spend their time together feigning research, while plotting ways to get Dean to relax, to take some time for himself, to allow himself to be cared for.

Every suggestion has its drawbacks.

"No way will he let you take the car, man," Sam says.

"You're probably right. What if I take him somewhere? The beach?" Castiel muses.

Sam shakes his head. "Not sure that he's a beachy kind of guy. He doesn't know how to sit still."

"Hmmm."

The conversations circle round and round like that, ideas being tossed back and forth, but nothing concrete comes out of their planning. Because it's all so false, so contrived that a) Dean will see through it in a matter of minutes and b) it will end up being almost exactly the opposite of what Dean needs and what Castiel wants to give him.

So they give up on their secret planning sessions for a while. Partly because they're out of ideas, and partly because of the looks that Dean's been shooting them. He can hardly be blamed; since they tend to fall into a guilty silence every time he enters whatever room they're in. He usually just shakes his head and continues on with whatever he'd been planning on doing, but Sam and Castiel can tell that Dean is itching to ask them what the hell they think they're doing.

But he doesn't.

Which in and of itself is kind of weird, but Sam and Castiel let it go, mostly relieved that Dean hasn't pressed them for whatever it is they're talking about, thinking that they're off the hook.

Which of course, they so aren't.

Just because Castiel has stopped plotting with Sam doesn't mean that he's given up, though. Oh, far from it. Castiel is still determined to find a way to give Dean the care that Dean so freely gives away (Sam insists on saying "forces on me"). Castiel knows that while it is something that Dean must do, this caring for others, Castiel also knows that Dean aches to be cared for, to be taken care of. Castiel can't quite explain why or how he knows this, but he does. Dean practically hums with the need for it, and each day that Castiel fails to find a way to give this to Dean, Castiel grows increasingly frustrated with himself.

Because he is an Angel of the Lord, dammit, and he should be able to do this one, small thing.

He can smite demons.

He can bring down lightning.

He has killed angels.

He can fly the world over in a matter of minutes.

But he can't help out the one friend he has in the world.

It is most irritating.

Dean, of course, is well aware that something is annoying the angel. He's incredibly curious about whatever it was that Cas and Sam had been planning, because he just knows that it has to do with him, but for the life of him, he can't quite figure it out. He also knows that asking Cas won't do a bit of good. He might not even be able to get the information from Sam, but that doesn't mean he's not going to try.

"Sammy, what the hell is going on with you and Cas?" Dean says, one afternoon. He's got two bottles of beer, and he opens them both, handing one over to Sam. He's decided that the direct approach is the best way to go.

"Hm?" Sam says, taking a long drink from the bottle, buying himself a little bit of time. His subterfuge does not fool Dean, who just fixes a gimlet eye on his younger brother, waiting him out. Sam swallows. "Nothing, really."

"Nothing, really?" Dean says, mimicking his brother's tone. "That sounds an awful lot like something to me."

Sam shrugs, taking his time formulating an answer. There's not much he can say that will satisfy Dean, so he opts for a variation of the truth. "Cas wanted to do something for you, something nice, like a present. We were...ah...brainstorming ideas."

"A present? What am I, 10?" Dean asks, taken aback. He had thought it had something to do with some sort of demon, or other monster. He had not expected it to be, well, personal. As far as he knew, Cas didn't do personal. (Dean didn't do personal either.)

"No, but Cas...man, Cas just wants to do something nice for you, that's all. No big deal." Sam's tone is frustrated, annoyed at having to manage his brother and all of Dean's issues all the time.

"Well I'm not a freaking girl, he doesn't have to do squat for me. Stop talking about me behind my back. It's childish," Dean says, sliding into a grumpy mood.

"Whatever. You know you can't get Cas to change his mind about something."

Dean just rolls his eyes as he drinks some more of his beer. Fucking Cas. The angel drives him absolutely batty sometimes, with his stupid trench coat and his inability to get being human and his strange attempts at helping out.

Although there is some really small part of Dean that kind of feels warm at the thought that Cas wants to do something nice for him. Nobody has done that for Dean, not since Dean was four years old.

Dean shuts that small part of himself away and stomps away, ignoring the puppy eye look on Sam's face, ignoring the feeling of disappointment that blooms in his chest as he does so.

He is Dean Winchester, hunter. He doesn't need anyone to do anything for him, nice or otherwise.

And he slams the door behind him, feeling not a little bit petty as he does it.

Castiel has a brainstorm a few days after. He's not certain about it, but he thinks that it might be an okay idea. He corners Sam in the bathroom, knowing that Dean won't walk in on them there.

"Dude!" Sam says when Cas pops in unannounced. Thank God all he's doing is brushing his teeth. He's sprayed a bit of toothpaste onto Cas's coat, but Cas doesn't seem to notice. "You do NOT just show up in the bathroom when a guy's in there. I KNOW Dean has said something to you about this."

Castiel tilts his head. "But you are only brushing your teeth. I made certain that you were...presentable...before I appeared."

"You were spying on me?" Sam asks, spluttering. His face is burning, and he knows that he's turning an unflattering shade of red.

"No, I listened at the door."

"Dude, that is the DEFINITION of spying."

Castiel nods thoughtfully, as if this is information that's worth contemplating, that he's going to file away for later examination. Actually, Sam thinks, that's probably exactly what Cas is doing.

"Apologies. However, I have had an idea, and I wanted your input." Castiel waits for Sam to nod a 'go ahead' at him before he launches into an explanation of his idea. Sam's eyes go wide as saucers as he listens to Cas.

"Wait, really? You can do that?" Sam asks.

Castiel nods. "Of course. It would be only for about a day, but I can do it. You could be there too, if you wanted."

Sam is blown away; breathless with what Castiel is offering Dean, offering them both. "Wow, Cas. That's...wow. That would be amazing. Dean would...you could do that, and there'd be no apocalypse-y stuff attached, no desperate need for information, or to learn something, we could just...be there?"

Castiel nods, smiling, because if this is the way that Sam is reacting, he knows that this is a good idea, or at least, the best one they've had so far. "Yes. It would be apocalypse free, demon free and it would be an opportunity for you two to enjoy."

Sam grabs the angel and pulls him into a bear hug. "Cas, if you can do this, man, that would be amazing. It would be brilliant. Dean would love it. Thank you. Just. Thank you."

Castiel allows the larger man to squeeze him for another minute, and then carefully extricates himself from Sam's embrace. "I am glad that you think it would be okay. I am a little worried that it will make him sad, though."

Sam hesitates. "It might. But I think that having the good memory will outweigh the sad part."

"Good. I will go and prepare. Thank you, Sam." Cas nods and then in a flutter, is gone, leaving Sam alone in the bathroom.

It does not take Castiel long to prepare, and by that evening, he is ready. He appears in the living room, where Dean and Sam are watching TV, and settles down on the couch next to Dean. "Dean."

Dean looks over at the angel. "Yeah, Cas?"

"I have a... I wish to share something with you," Cas replies.

Dean groans, because he thought that this subject had been dropped, that Cas was over trying to do something nice for him. It appeared not to be the case, and it was making Dean uncomfortable. "Cas...really, you don't have to. I kind of wish you wouldn't."

Sam frowns at Dean, turning off the TV. "Dean, just let him. He wants to, and...I do too."

"You're ganging up on me?" Dean asks. Now he's really sure he doesn't like where this is going.

"Not exactly, Dean," Cas says.

"No, we're not," Sam says. "Listen, what Cas has planned...man, I get something out of this too, so, just shut up and let him do this, okay?"

Completely baffled now, Dean crosses his arms over his chest, irritated that they're both giving him puppy eyes now. He looks from one to the other and then huffs out a sigh of irritation. "Fine. Fine. Just...get it over with."

Castiel doesn't wait for Dean to say anything else, to change his mind, he just disappears.

"What the fuck..." Dean says.

Within a moment, Castiel reappears, but he's not alone. There’s someone with him, a woman with long blonde hair, and bright blue eyes, which are shining with unshed tears. She is smiling, though, and before Dean or Sam have the chance to register who she is, she's pulled Dean into her arms.

"Oh Dean."

Dean pulls away. "Mom?" his voice is choked with emotion, and he can't see anything but her face, although he can almost feel Sam's enormous grin hitting him in the back like the heat off a thousand watt bulb. Sam stumbles up out of his chair.

"Mom..." and she leaps up and gives Sam a big hug too. She turns to Dean once more, pulls him up by his arm and hugs the two of them as tight as she can. They're both so much bigger than she is, and oh so much larger than the last time that she held them that she's not sure she can believe it herself, but she's there, her boys are there and she's going to hug them for all they're worth.

Dean finally pulls away from her embrace to stare at Cas. "What did you do, Cas?" Afraid of the answer, afraid of what Cas will say, that Cas has done something that can't be undone.

Cas smiles softly. "You could say that I borrowed her from Heaven. I asked her if she wanted to come and visit you, and she said she did, very much, that she wanted to have the chance to take care of you."

Dean looked from the angel to his mother to Sam. "Sam, you knew about this?"

"He asked me yesterday. He wanted to be sure it wouldn't make you feel worse." Dean was right, Sam's smile was so big it threatened to crack open his face, but Dean had a feeling that his face looked much the same.

For once, Dean is speechless, because this gift, this is an extraordinary gift that no one has ever been able to give him, and the fact that Castiel, awkward nerd tax accountant angel thought of it...Dean is overwhelmed. Before he can think about it, before he can stop himself, he strides across the room and hugs Cas, whispering his thanks in the... _his_...angel's ear. Cas returns the hug briefly and then steps away. "Go spend time with her. She can only stay for the day. I will be here tomorrow to return her."

Mary smiles at Dean and Cas, she grasps Sam's enormous hand in her own. "Castiel, please, stay. I'd like to get to know you too." Because this is not just a chance for Dean and Sam to have their mom with them, but also a chance for her to get to know her boys. It's also a chance to get to know this angel, this being, who is clearly so important to her oldest son.

Castiel hesitates, not wanting to intrude.

"C'mon Cas, stay. Please?" Dean asks.

So he does.

And for once, Dean gets taken care of by someone else.

**Author's Note:**

> ...and Mary feels too.


End file.
